Artboy99

On 5/1/2024 at 5:24 PM, thehumantorch said:

I see a lot of complaints about greedy dealers but there's jerks and good guys on both sides of the table

there was another guy who was interested in one of our Secret Wars 8 Canadian price variants and he asked me to hold it on Saturday around lunch time. Near the end of Sunday he returns and offered half the sticker.

After enough of these instances I believe I have a good sense of how to spot most of them. I did not hold the book and left it on display right where he saw it earlier. Exactly why are we holding it? If it is because you as the potential buyer need to go to the ATM then tell us, otherwise I assume you are up to something fishy

On 5/1/2024 at 12:44 PM, Paul Kosnik said:

This isn't trimmed.  It meets neither the letter nor the spirit of the definition of trimmed.  Firstly, trimmed is entire side (or substantially so, perhaps in the case of a misscut comic).  And trimmed, by definition, improves the appearance and is intended to deceive.  This cut does not improve the appearance, cannot deceive, and is for one small section of the edge.  This is just a defect, and will be graded as such if they do their jobs correctly.  Here is CGC's definition of trimmed:

• TRIMMING – A technique that involves cutting off the edges of a comic book’s cover or pages to remove defects and sharpen edges. Unlike the other restoration techniques, trimming results in an improved appearance through destruction (loss of paper).

just FYI: Trimming does not need to be the entire side.

To the original poster: You used a cutting instrument and cut off a portion of the cover. How is it not trimmed? 

On 5/1/2024 at 8:10 AM, october said:

These threads always bring out the doom and gloom. Maybe I am an outlier, maybe I am lucky, maybe I am just better at it , but my comic "investments" (really just my collection) have vastly outperformed my other portfolios. I spend an absurd amount of time looking for deals, it's fun for me, and I've been a quasi-dealer for about 20 years, but it IS possible to come out well ahead with this stuff. I think I am far better off sinking $10k into a comic than I am an ETF, mutual fund, etc. because I've spent, literally, tens of thousands of hours buying/selling comics. That time better be good for something....and it has been. Plus it's SO SO SO much more fun than just clicking the buy button on Vanguard or Fidelity. It takes a long, long time to develop the right eye and the right strategy though. Just buying random keys off the next CLink auction ain't gonna cut it. 

I guess I'd rather rely on my own instinct and knowledge in a weirdo niche market than hand my money over to a fund manager or try to beat buildings full of MIT grads and their algorithms. I do max out my 401k, but I'm not going to be shy about plowing what's left of my hobby gains into a comic I think is awesome and will continue to be awesome. Maybe that's risky? I don't know. I kind of feel like it's the opposite actually. 

Just felt like I'd post a slightly different perspective to what usually pops up in these threads.

agreed!

I have a lot more knowledge of the comic industry gained from the 50 some years I have been buying comics, and I feel I have a very good eye for what others will also like and that is what I generally bought.

I more than tripled my "investment" over a short 10 year period and I think it is hard to replicate that type of return in normal investment opportunities.

Paid off my mortgage and vehicle loan in January from selling some comics.

Enjoyed the show!

I sold quite a few books out of the 4 boxes of my inventory, emptied a box. What was selling was Spawn, as well as J. Scott Campbell variants. I sold my Le Chat Noir Black Cat Campbell, and turned that sale into a 3.5 Hulk #5.

I bought quite a few VF-NM Hulks

Absolutely hilarious times out at night eating dinner after the show. I have not laughed like that since...last Calgary Expo!

On 4/9/2024 at 8:32 AM, Anthriel said:

Thank you, Comicginger!  This is really what I was looking for.  I was at a loss for most of those values as well.  I do have a few Archies featuring swimsuit covers, etc.  In the next few days, I'll post some scans of the New Mutants 87 and others.  Just really trying to see what (if any) would be worth getting professionally graded for sale.  I should have added, I am looking to sell off my collection.  I was just going to list everything with Everything But The House (EBTH; they are local to me, and have pretty good national/international coverage.  I've seen some pretty run of the mill collections go for several hundred dollars), but wanted to have some stand-out pieces if possible.  Interesting side note: I see that you are in Canada.  I grew up in western Washington state, and just recently realized that some of my comics, especially the Archies, are Canadian Price Variants.  Is there a market for those for Canadian collectors?

Canadian price variants have a stronger market in the USA in my opinion. Here in Canada they are more easily found.

On 4/10/2024 at 8:53 AM, Chip Cataldo said:

As a huge Byrne fan, you have insulted me. Also, you're incorrect. See: Byrne. 

Edit : Just make FF #242-244 into a movie. Count your billion dollars. Done.

Great story!

But I also love the trial of Galactus, in particular the full page of all the different races and how they see Galactus when they look upon him; brilliant idea.

On 2/26/2024 at 12:05 PM, Bosco685 said:

"the danger in Hollywood is that people get excited and only think about release dates, not quality." - Exactly. Thank you Mr. Villeneuve

On 4/5/2024 at 4:47 AM, s-man said:

All I know is if they turn her into a princess with a big musical number, I will never watch another Disney-fied Marvel movie again.

I hated that scene in the Marvels. After all the singing and dancing they were doing ended they immediately reveal none of it mattered because the Prince can speak normally as he is bilingual.

On 4/4/2024 at 9:01 PM, Randall Dowling said:

A lot of great mags in this thread.  Surprised no one has grabbed a couple of these as they're pretty tough books to find in any condition. 

agreed.

On 4/4/2024 at 11:37 AM, Poutine said:

I'll say this, Evil Dead Rise was pretty well done

There is hope!

On 3/31/2024 at 3:01 PM, batmiesta said:

Very nice!

On 3/30/2024 at 8:13 PM, Kramerica said:

Oh, and as far as Conan is concerned I'm working on a 1-30 run and being picky about the copies I buy for the set. But I picked up a nice #10 the other day:

gorgeous copy!

I also focused on a 1-30 run, choosing to assemble a 8.5+ run

On 3/29/2024 at 6:27 PM, thehumantorch said:

Appreciate your detailed post.  First time I sent books I also went through each book doing research and building a spreadsheet.  Then I went to price books and realized they provided a ton of pricing data.

Out of the approximately 100 books I've sent all have sold but 4.  3 of them I've kinda dropped the price as far as I want and I'm just feeling stubborn.  1 is Comic Reader #179 9.8 - Death of Stan Lee parody - and it was a $300 book when I sent it in and now it's a $100 book and frankly I'd rather keep it than sell it for $100.

I have sold all but 1 of all the books I have sent in.

On 3/27/2024 at 12:55 PM, piper said:

Is this a reboot?

no, this is supposed to happen after the first film, but before Aliens so sometime during Ripley's 57 year space float.

On 3/24/2024 at 10:00 AM, Dr. Love said:

Agreed. I like Jake but Conor was cartoonish, and that's on the script and Liman.  Liman is high on his own supply if he thinks this one could have run up any sort of numbers in the theatre. 

yeah that is my take as well. Conor was just doofy.

4/10

i remain hopeful but I personally think they have no clue how to make movies about Alien any more. I have not liked anything since Cameron's Aliens as the first 2 films set the bar extremely high, anything that doesn't hit that mark is a waste of time.

Manufacturing error and I personally don't think it makes the error book more valuable.

It is making me check the copies I own of the book though!

On 3/14/2024 at 4:00 PM, Bosco685 said:

 

They can focus on "guaranteed hits"  but with poor writing and terrible execution I don't think any film/TV show they make with any of their properties will be guaranteed to be a hit.

On 3/6/2024 at 10:19 AM, shadroch said:

That is very cool! 

The large Steranko collection purchased by @thehumantorch and I had 2 programs to that show! Here is the pic I took when we first had a look at the collection in the seller's basement.

On 3/11/2024 at 11:43 AM, Bosco685 said:

Have you seen a Mad Max movie before?

Yes. I just dont want outlandish stuff like the flame thrower guitarist of the previous film. I am aware i am in the minority.

On 3/8/2024 at 9:36 AM, Bosco685 said:

The Empire magazine image is exactly what i am talking about. Over the top visual spectacle. 

On 3/8/2024 at 10:18 AM, Number 6 said:

This is something I liked as well.

In the book

  Hide contents

Alia being a toddler who can speak and act like an adult

has weird creep factor to it.  But it's one of those things that if you try and replicate that on film, your choices are kind of limited as to how to pull that off.  Having a child actor with an adult over-dubbing the lines comes off as a bit silly instead of creepy.

The way they handled this in the film I think keeps that weird creep factor as to me 

  Hide contents

it seems like Alia is manipulating Jessica and events from the womb, but that's my take.  Others may not see it that way.

 

On 3/6/2024 at 11:39 AM, Number 6 said:

And you really don't need to.

Godfather, Planet of the Apes, Lord of the Rings, Jaws....all of those movies have changes or dropped things from the novels they're based on, in some cases considerably.  Novels that were best-sellers in their own right.  Those films are considered to be very good to excellent, classic adaptations of their source material.  I'd be surprised if anyone considered any of those films a "train-wreck" adaptation simply because it's different from the book.

Look, you didn't enjoy it, I respect that, and I'm not going to try and argue you into loving it.  But I do want to address this because I see this "arrrggg! It's not exactly like the book!" criticism popping up on different sites.

Personally, I don't think the goal of a film adaptation of novel is to have a scene-for-scene, line-for-line representation of the book.  Obviously, there needs to be fidelity to the source material, otherwise why do the adaptation in first place, just do something original.  On the other hand, the film has to be its own thing and be able to stand on its own, otherwise it just becomes a book report.  If someone wants the exact experience of reading the book, then they can just read the book.

The challenge that Villeneuve had with this is not only does his adaptation have to be something distinct from the novel, it also has to differentiate itself from the two previous adaptations, both of which cover the same basic plot.  And as you pointed out, the mini-series follows the novel very closely, so if Villeneuve were to replicate that level of fidelity, then it would just come off as the Villeneuve-version of the mini-series.  Surely you can understand why he would have no interest in doing that.

And for me personally (and I'm sorry, I know I'm going to ruffle some feathers when I say this) the mini-series being "book-accurate" is the only virtue it has, and in my opinion is an example of how an adaptation can strictly adhere to the source material and still manage to make the story seem dull and uninteresting.  I've watched both mini-series once and have no desire to ever watch them again.  Again, if I want something 'exactly like the book' I'll just re-read the book.

I have read the novels several times, it's one of my favorites, and I certainly want an adaptation that is respectful of the source material (and IMHO I think Villeneuve's version is) but at the same time I don't think the novel should be treated as so sacrosanct that nothing and be altered in an adaptation to film.  I can't even imagine what it would be like to have film versions of Jaws and Planet of the Apes that were exactly like the books instead of the versions we have.

It's NOT about "fixing" or "improving" the source material.  I think you're attributing ill-intent and taking offense where there really doesn't need to be.  Books are one medium for telling a story, films are another medium.  There are things that work well and can be done in one medium that don't work as well or can't be done in another.   That's the challenge of adapting a novel, especially a well-loved one:  how to capture what makes the novel special while simultaneously making something that will be special as a film, a film that will have merit on its own.

And that's what makes Dune a challenging adaptation is because part of what people love about it is all the intricate details of the world-building and all of the plans-withing-plans story.  That's something that can done well in a book.  But instead of having a bunch characters spout tons of expository dialog and rushing from scene to scene to cover all the sub- and sub-sub-plots, Villeneuve chose to tell the story more visually, and that's something that, when done well, is something that the medium of film can excel at.  And I think this adaptation does.

If someone wants exactly what's in the book, the best thing to do is read the book.  If you're appreciation of the book makes you demand a literal adaptation, then the HBO mini-series already exist.

 

But if you really want to experience cinema (and I apologize, as I know Scorsese has made that a trigger-word around here) then I highly recommend seeing this in a theater, preferably a premium theater.  Personally, I think the love of the source material is evident, the major themes are well represented, and I appreciate how it enabled me to experience aspects of the novel that I would never get from just reading the book.  It's not perfect, but I'd give it 4.5/5 or 9/10, for me the best movie since Godzilla Minus One and one of the best new movies I've seen in a long time

 

This film certainly isn't interchangeable with the novel.... but I don't think that should really be the goal to begin with.

I agree.

I am ok with deviations from the book/source material if it makes sense and enhances the story being told on the screen.

Having the elves arrive at Helm's Deep in Lord of the Rings was not in the book, but the Elves were fighting the forces of evil during this time and having the elves arrive created a fantastic moment in the film that also acknowledged the source material.

I actually like how Dune 2 has chosen to deal with Alia so far. It adds something to the story that the audience has never seen before yet is a nod to the source material.

as it sits I am 5.5

With a press I see this getting to 6.5-7.0.